


Hail To The Chief

by ThePartyParrot



Category: Stephanie Plum - Janet Evanovich
Genre: Anal Sex, Angst and Humor, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Comfort/Angst, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Explicit Consent, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Humor, Multi, Oral Sex, Porn With Plot, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Semi-Public Sex, Sex, Vaginal Sex, Veteran Ranger
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-26
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:27:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 18,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24396541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThePartyParrot/pseuds/ThePartyParrot
Summary: October 2016. Ranger invites Stephanie to help on a very prestigious job, guarding the President. But what happens when everything in both their lives goes wrong? Stephanie must learn who is good for her, and Ranger learns he can't always be the strong one. Trauma, danger, and enough lemons to degrease an engine.I have finished the story, but will post one chapter at a time.
Relationships: Lester Santos/Original Character(s), Lula/Tank (Stephanie Plum), Ricardo Carlos Manoso/Stephanie Plum, Stephanie Plum/Lester Santos
Comments: 4
Kudos: 11





	1. The Proposal

Stephanie

The Trenton sky was overcast and grey, and the Autumn air had gone past ‘crisp’ and into ‘chilly’. Clouds overhead threatened rain as I scuffled from my POS Camry into the Bonds office. Connie and Lula were there already, sharing a box of donuts and chatting. Lula looked up at me.

“Girl, your hair is frightening. You look like Frankenstein’s bride if she didn’t have that weird white streak.”

“It’s the humidity,” I whined. “I can’t keep it down with anything short of superglue in weather like this. Are there any new skips for me?”

Connie passed over a folder. “Here’s one. Nothing that will pay the rent, but you might be able to buy a new pair of shoes.”

I looked at the file. Marie LaPard had been picked up for shoplifting 16 bags of Halloween candy. A woman after my own heart. Her statement said that last year she had run out of treats, and been both TP’d and egged by neighborhood children. She was terrified it would happen again this year, but her budget couldn’t stretch to cover enough candy to satisfy a Burg Halloween. She’s gone into a local Target and hid the bags of candy in her outfit while tucked in-between clothing racks. She might have gotten away with it, except a bag of mini Hershey bars had come open and dropped one by one out of her pants leg as she left the store, leaving a trail of chocolaty breadcrumbs for store security to follow into the parking lot.

The one I had outstanding was more likely to be a problem. Robert Carlin, arrested for hitting his wife with a frying pan. He claims he just been turning quickly to put it away after washing it, but the fact that she had been hit in the face, and that a similar thing had happened with a broom handle two months ago, meant no one believed him. He also had a history of getting into bar brawls. The bond was high enough to pay all my bills for a couple of weeks, but getting him might be tricky.

Connie looked like she was going to say something, she stopped suddenly as the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end and the air pressure changed. The scent of Bvgari shower gel wafted towards me, and a warm hand settled on the nape of my neck. 

“Babe, can I talk to you?” Ranger whispered in my ear, sending a bolt of heat down my spine and electrifying every nerve ending I had. He was Armani Ranger today, wearing an impeccable suit that probably cost 4 times as much as my car. It fit him perfectly, giving an air of class but not quite hiding the muscle underneath.

I nodded mutely as I followed him out the door, Connie and Lula fanning themselves as we left the office and headed into the ally that served as our semi-private meeting space. Ranger looked at the folder in my hand. “How is your caseload at the moment? Would you be available for a Rangeman job the next few days?”

“I’ve got two skips. One shouldn’t be any trouble, the other one I could use some help on. Robert Carlin, domestic violence. Known to have a nasty temper when drunk. Or Sober.”

Ranger nodded. “I’ll send Lester to help with Carlin. I’d do it myself, but I have planning meetings for the next 12 hours.”

I nodded. “Do they have to do with the job?” Sure, Ranger always planned everything down to the tiniest detail, but 12 hours straight seemed like a lot, even for him.

He gave a slight nod, then suddenly my back was to the wall and he was pressed against me. His fingers gently ran through my hair, pulling the wild mess beck. His lips brushed against my cheek, then he nibbled the shell of my ear. I arched my back as he whispered to me, but I was so distracted by his presence that I can’t have heard him right.

“Wait, you want me to what?” I asked breathlessly.

He pulled back and his lips twitched. For Ranger that was the equivalent of a face splitting grin. “How would you like to guard the President, Babe?”


	2. The Explination

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ranger explains his offer to Stephanie, and she goes to do a capture

Ranger

I looked down at Steph, immensely enjoying the look of shock on her face. I reached out with one finger and gently closed her mouth, which had dropped open in astonishment. It’s not often I get to surprise her quite so much. This was fun.

She punched me in the arm. It didn’t budge me at all, and I let my slight smile creep up fractionally more.

“Don’t tease me like that. What the hell do you mean guard the president? I’m pretty sure there’s a whole agency to do that.”

Dios, she looked sexy when she was annoyed. Inwardly, I wanted to pin her to the wall again and take her right there. Outwardly, I just shrugged slightly. “The Secret Service has its limits. They are set up to protect the president and a few other government officials, either in Washington or while they are traveling on official business. We’re only three weeks out from an election, every high powered government official is on the campaign trail doing rallies. They are spread thin. So they bring in people from other government agencies. The people at the metal detectors are often TSA agents, for instance.”

She still looked skeptical, so I continued, trying very hard not to stare at her lips, still slightly open in shock. “Rangeman has been contracted to help with a rally in Philadelphia on Halloween, a little more than a week before the election. It will be outside, in an open space that will be very difficult to secure. At the same time, the Secretary of State will be holding a rally in Harrisburg, and the Vice President in Virginia. So most Federal agents in the region will be needed at one or another of them that day. Frankly, the Secret Service needs everyone it can get.

Steph still looked skeptical. “But why would you want me help guard the President? You guys have years of training. I keep my gun in the cookie jar!”

I chuckled at that. I love how she makes me laugh, and I love watching what my laugh does to her. Her eyes dilated, turning the blue almost to indigo. I couldn’t stop myself from nuzzling her temple with my nose. “That’s one of the reasons I’ll need you all week. You’ll have to spend more time at the gun range. I need you comfortable with your gun. But what I want you for is your intuition, and your ability to blend in with a crowd. Guys like Tank and Cal stand out.”

She giggled at the idea of Cal, with his flaming skull tattoo, trying to blend into a crowd. “I don’t know, on Halloween Cal might be able to pull it off. Do I get to wear a costume?”

I glanced at my watch. I had a meeting in 10 minutes back at Rangeman with the Secret Service advance team. “What did you have in mind?” 

She got an evil grin on her face. “Well, I had been planning on being Wonder Woman, but now I’m thinking sexy Secret Service agent.” A picture flashed through my mind of her in a tight, short skirt, low-cut blouse, and thigh-high boots. If I didn’t get out of here now I would be late for my meeting. In fact, if I kept thinking about that costume I would drag her back to my Cayenne and would be very late for my meeting. 

“I have to go Babe. Go catch your chocolate thief, I’ll have Lester meet you at the police station to get Carlin. After that, report to Rangeman for target practice.” I gave her one last hungry kiss, then hurried to my Porsche, trying to move gracefully despite the tightness in my pants that I desperately hoped would be gone by the time I made it back to the office.

Stephanie

Marie LaPard lived in a small duplex in the Burg. The house was partially obscured much of the year by a tree planted in the sidewalk in front of the porch steps, but soon the brilliant red and yellow leaves would fall, leaving nothing but depressing bare branches. I parked two doors down and rang the doorbell.

I didn’t know Marie well, she had been a couple years younger than me in school, but she’d always seemed pleasant enough. The woman who came to the door bore only scant resemblance to the teen I had vaguely known. Her hair was in a rat’s nest, her eyes were sunken, and she looked like she hadn’t slept in a week. She was wearing a nightgown and ratty bathrobe. Both she and her clothes looked like they hadn’t been washed in a week.

“Marie? It’s Stephanie Plum from High School. You missed your court date, you need to come with me to reschedule.” 

It was my standard line for first time offenders. Sometimes they even believed me.

Marie looked at me with confusion, “Stephanie? I thought you looked familiar. I’m sorry, but I can’t leave the house like this.”

I couldn’t blame her. I wouldn’t want to go out in public looking like that either. “What happened?”

She looked like she was about to cry. “Come in, I don’t want anyone else to see me.”

Normally I would avoid going into a skip’s house if I could help it, but I was pretty sure Marie wasn’t violent, just embarrassed and cold. I stepped into her living room, which was a carbon-copy of my parents. Except my mother would claw out her eyeballs rather than have a house that looked this bad. Newspapers were laying around, dirty dishes were stacked on the coffee table and couch. Random junk was scattered so thick on the floor I had to be careful where I stepped.

Now, I’m no household Goddess, but this was really bad. And Marie didn’t do anything to deserve to be seen in her present condition, and be the butt of jokes for weeks in both the TPD and Burg gossip mill. 

Marie valiantly tried to play proper Burg hostess and cleared a plate that was growing something fuzzy off the couch, as well as two books and an umbrella. She sat down on the recently cleaned cusion and offered me the spot on the couch that had recently been the only clear space in the room. She stared at her hands for a moment, then the story burst out of her.

“I guess you know what I was arrested for?” I nodded quickly, hoping that we could get this over quickly so I could meet Lester, capture Carlin, and then go back to Rangeman to train. “Well, the bag of candy that broke open, I was holding it next to my body by putting it in, well, my underwear. And not all of them fell down my leg, some stayed there.”

I winced. I had a feeling this would be an unpleasant story.

“So when I was arrested, I had to sit for hours at the police station until I could find someone to bail me out. And the chocolate melted and oozed out of the wrapper and stuck to my skin. So I was sitting there, absolutely mortified, and I had all this goo on me. I was so embarrassed, but I couldn’t get properly cleaned up, so I just sat in it. And now even hearing about chocolate brings me right back there and I completely freak out. And normally I’d eat some chocolate to help deal with the stress, but obviously that’s out of the question. So now I’m so messed up I can’t function, and I’ve lost my best way to cope!”

I couldn’t help but feel bad for her. I imagined what it would be like if Boston Cream donuts started causing me stress. I might implode too.

“What you need is a different stress reliever. How about this, I’ll come back in an hour or two, that will give you a chance to shower and change clothes. And I’ll bring you some TastyKakes. They always make me feel better. Then we’ll go to the courthouse to get you rescheduled.”

Marie looked at me with what might have been hope. “No chocolate, right?”

“No chocolate. Butterscotch Krimpets. And if you promise to come without trouble, I’ll throw in one of those little peach pies.” A brilliant idea struck me. “In fact, I can even have them personally delivered by a really hot guy.” That might help ensure that she was actually here when I got back. Frankly, her bond was worth so little I was more interested in getting my caseload clear than the check. I didn’t think she’d leave town, but she might decide it was a good time to go see a movie.

I pulled out my phone and flipped through the pictures from my birthday party at Rangeman the week before. Soon I found the one I was looking for. Lester Santos, laughing at a joke Bobby had told him. He was nearly as good looking as Ranger (not surprising, since they were cousins), but he smiled a lot more, and looked much less intimidating unless he was working at being scary. I showed the picture to Marie, who looked at it slack-jawed. 

“Is he single?” she asked, intrigued. 

I hadn’t spoken to Lester in more than 24 hours, so I had no idea of his current relationship status. He went through women at the speed most men went through boxes of their favorite breakfast cereals. He was never cruel, and he never gave the impression he was planning on sticking around. He just had the attention span of a goldfish.

“I’m not sure, but I know he’d be happy to come meet you.” I looked around the room. There was no way she could get both it and herself clean in just an hour or two. “How about you meet us at the curb when we get here.”

She blushed as she took in the mess. “Yeah, I think that’s a good idea. Call me when you are close. I have to go get cleaned up.” She practically bounced up off the couch and walked me to the door.

When I got back to my car I called Lester. “Slight change of schedule. We’re going after Carlin, then coming back for Marie. I’ll text you the address.” 

“No problem, Beautiful. I’ll see you soon.”

“Oh, and Lester? Wear something sexy but not too intimidating. I have a special job for you once we drop Carlin off.”

I swear I could hear him grin on the other end of the phone.


	3. Takedown

Stephanie

Robert Carlin lived in a middle class neighborhood not far from the button factory where he worked. I arrived there a few minutes after I left Marie’s house, and waited in my car for Lester to show up. Normally I would go in on my own, but doing that had a nasty tendency to land me rolling garbage, and I didn’t want to show at Rangeman looking like that. It might be hard to convince the Feds I was worthy of providing security to the First Dog, let alone the president, if I had scrambled eggs and coffee grounds in my hair. 

Lester showed up 5 minutes after I did. He parked his black SUV across the street from me and got out, leaning against the rear door while grinning at me. 

He had followed my instructions to a T. While still in all black, he wasn’t wearing cargoes and a t-shirt like usual. Instead he was in slacks and a black Oxford shirt. The shirt still clung to his muscles, but he gave off an air of being a businessman who spent a lot of time at the gym, instead of a badass former special forces security specialist. The only thing about his outfit that hinted at his true profession was the black utility belt that I knew would contain a gun, a knife, pepper spray, and a Taser. 

I gave him a visible once over, and showed my appreciation with a small golf clap. He strode over to me, wiggling his eyebrows. “Hey Beautiful. To what do I owe the pleasure of your wardrobe request? Have you finally decided to dump the cop and let me take you away from all this?”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s Morelli’s desire to take me away from my current life that causes us the most stress. Besides, you know Ranger would hunt you down to the ends of the Earth.”

Lester nodded. Honestly, we both knew that all the flirting was just play. He might be almost as good looking as Ranger, and far more lighthearted, but I had enough men in my life. Adding one more might cause me to spontaneously combust.

“Well then Beautiful, let’s get this show on the road. What did the guy do?”

“Hit his wife with a frying pan.”

Lester’s ever present grin dropped from his face. He may have killed before, but hitting someone you were supposed to love? Someone weaker than you? That was a different story. Carlin would really be wise to let me take him in quietly. 

I strode up to the door and banged on it. He worked second shift at the button factory, so he should be home. After 30 seconds, I banged again. Lester was standing a few feet behind me, but out of sight of any peepholes or windows. After the third try, the door was yanked open by a surprised looking Robert Carlin. He looked like I’d rousted him out of bed; his eyes were blurry and he was in sweatpants and a wife-beater. Oh the irony.

“Mr. Carlin? I represent your bail bondsman. You missed your court date, you have to come with me to reschedule.”

He looked at me for a moment, then tried to slam the door. Luckily I learned a long time ago to get my boot in the door as soon as it opened. It bounced back after slamming into my CAT boots, making a slight ‘sproing’ sound. I pushed my way into the house and grabbed the collar of his shirt. He reached his arm back to take a swing at me, and I pulled down on the shirt while lifting my knee. His forehead slammed into it, dazing him. I pushed him onto the ground and got my knee into his back, ignoring the pain on my patella that meant I would probably end up with quite a bruise the next day. Pulling handcuffs from my pocket, I secured his arms behind his back, then looked up when I heard clapping.

“Nice job Bomber,” Lester praised. “Couldn’t have done it smoother myself.” 

I smiled back at him. “Thanks for helping to train me in hand-to-hand combat. Seems it came in handy.”

Carlin groaned from the floor, and I reached down to yank him to his feet.

“Oh, let me have the honors, Beautiful?” Lester asked. “You took him down so well I didn’t get to rough him up at all.”

I laughed a bit at that, then stepped back, making a ‘he’s all yours’ gesture. Lester grabbed Carlin’s arms and yanked up roughly, straining his shoulders as he yelped and struggled to his feet. “Your car or mine?” Lester said, pushing Carlin out the door. 

“Put him in yours. I have to make a quick stop at WaWa before we get to Marie’s house. I’ll meet you in the parking lot, then we can head to the station.”

Lester nodded. “Get me a coffee will you?” Then he shoved Carlin out the door, who desperately tried to keep his feet under him as he stumbled out.

I closed the door, twisting the knob lock so the house would be more secure, and practically skipped back to my car. I got in, and I heard a distinct grunt as Lester shoved Carlin into the SUV, banging his shoulder hard against the frame. 

I have heard other parts of the country don’t have WaWas. They don’t know what they are missing. It’s an awesome convenience store, with Fee-Free ATMs, a deli counter, fruit smoothies, premade snacks and lunches of both the healthy and unhealthy variety, chocolate pudding with bits of cookie dough to mix in, their own line of drinks, and almost every store has a large display of TastyKakes. 

I grabbed a box of Butterscotch Krimpets and a peach pie, then wandered over to the baked goods shelf. Marie’s story about the chocolate melted in her underwear made the Boston Creme’s look far less appetizing than usual, so instead I grabbed a cream filled coffee cake muffin. A quick stop at the coffee section and the pay counter and I was out the door.

Lester was waiting in the lot for me as I came out. Somehow he had managed to get a prime spot right in front, despite the lot being mostly full. He rolled down the window and I handed him his coffee.

“Thanks Beautiful. What flavor did you get me?”

“Cuban roast, of course. What else would I get you?” I bit into my muffin, hoping to keep the inevitable crumbs outside of my car.

Lester laughed. Then reached out to wipe a bit of the cream off my nose. I froze at the touch, and he did too.

“I’ll meet you at the station, OK?” I said quickly, then scampered back to my car, wondering if the butterflies in my stomach were nerves from my upcoming job, or something else.

Marie

I can’t believe this is my life. I made one little mistake. ONE! And now I’m a fugitive from the law. But not a cool fugitive like Harrison Ford. No, I’m the fugitive who gets depressed, stops leaving the house, and sees a schoolmate for the first time in more than a decade while looking like she was kidnapped by wildebeest and has been roaming the plains, surviving on grass.

Yeah. That’s my life now.

Honestly, I suppose I’m lucky that it was Stephanie picking me up. I imagine most bounty hunters wouldn’t have left me alone so I could shower and change, let alone bring me non-chocolate junk food and apparently a hot guy. I might be going back to the Courthouse, but at least I was keeping my dignity mostly intact.

I had just put the finishing touches on my hair when I got a text from Stephanie that they would be there in a few minutes. I wasn’t wearing anything fancy, just nice jeans and a red top, but at least my hair was clean and combed. I’d had to condition it three times to get it into a manageable state, then wash it again to get out all the conditioning residue. By the time I’d finished, I’d had to rush to make sure I was at least halfway decent before leaving the house.

I saw Stephanie pull up in a beaten down Toyota, and a large black SUV park right behind her. I slipped out the door so no one could see my living room, then turned around to lock the house. When I turned back to face the street my breath caught in my throat. Stephanie wasn’t kidding, this guy was seriously hot. I tried my best to not look like a complete idiot as I walked to the car, glad I’d picked a pair of basic boots instead of heels.

“Hey Marie. You’re looking happier.”

I nodded silently, not trusting myself to speak without babbling like a compleat idiot.

“I’ll call Vinnie and have him meet us at the courthouse, he can bond you right out again, and you’ll be home in a couple hours.” I nodded again, then looked up at her.

“Wait, a couple hours? I thought I’d be in and out in a few minutes. Will you stay there with me, how will I get home?” I started to panic a bit. I really needed a sugar hit.

Stephanie seemed to read my mind, so she handed me the WaWa bag. I pulled out a Butterscotch Krimpet and put half of one in my mouth.

The handsome man grinned at me. Lord, he’s even hotter when he smiles. “I’ll take care of it Steph.” He pulled a card out of his pocket. It simply said ‘Lester Santos’, and had a phone number on it. “Call me when you get out, and I’ll give you a ride home. You can pay me back by splitting the peach pie with me.” Then he whispered in my ear, “I do love to eat peaches. They taste so...sensual.”

I’m pretty sure I said something, but I’m also pretty sure it was nonsensical. I got into Stephanie’s car, blushing like I hadn’t since my prom night when Danny Bartaloski and I had performed some very awkward groping on each other in an attempt to have sex for the first time.

Stephanie smiled at me. “He’s charming, but he’s a tease. I think he likes you, just don’t expect him to stick around.”

I decided I could live with that. And all of the sudden I was really glad I’d stolen that chocolate.


	4. Never underestimate the power of WaWa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stephanie and Lester do a capture

Stephanie

Robert Carlin lived in a middle class neighborhood not far from the button factory where he worked. I arrived there a few minutes after I left Marie’s house, and waited in my car for Lester to show up. Normally I would go in on my own, but doing that had a nasty tendency to land me rolling garbage, and I didn’t want to show at Rangeman looking like that. It might be hard to convince the Feds I was worthy of providing security to the First Dog, let alone the president, if I had scrambled eggs and coffee grounds in my hair. 

Lester showed up 5 minutes after I did. He parked his black SUV across the street from me and got out, leaning against the rear door while grinning at me. 

He had followed my instructions to a T. While still in all black, he wasn’t wearing cargoes and a t-shirt like usual. Instead he was in slacks and a black Oxford shirt. The shirt still clung to his muscles, but he gave off an air of being a businessman who spent a lot of time at the gym, instead of a badass former special forces security specialist. The only thing about his outfit that hinted at his true profession was the black utility belt that I knew would contain a gun, a knife, pepper spray, and a Taser. 

I gave him a visible once over, and showed my appreciation with a small golf clap. He strode over to me, wiggling his eyebrows. “Hey Beautiful. To what do I owe the pleasure of your wardrobe request? Have you finally decided to dump the cop and let me take you away from all this?”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s Morelli’s desire to take me away from my current life that causes us the most stress. Besides, you know Ranger would hunt you down to the ends of the Earth.”

Lester nodded. Honestly, we both knew that all the flirting was just play. He might be almost as good looking as Ranger, and far more lighthearted, but I had enough men in my life. Adding one more might cause me to spontaneously combust.

“Well then Beautiful, let’s get this show on the road. What did the guy do?”

“Hit his wife with a frying pan.”

Lester’s ever present grin dropped from his face. He may have killed before, but hitting someone you were supposed to love? Someone weaker than you? That was a different story. Carlin would really be wise to let me take him in quietly. 

I strode up to the door and banged on it. He worked second shift at the button factory, so he should be home. After 30 seconds, I banged again. Lester was standing a few feet behind me, but out of sight of any peepholes or windows. After the third try, the door was yanked open by a surprised looking Robert Carlin. He looked like I’d rousted him out of bed; his eyes were blurry and he was in sweatpants and a wife-beater. Oh the irony.

“Mr. Carlin? I represent your bail bondsman. You missed your court date, you have to come with me to reschedule.”

He looked at me for a moment, then tried to slam the door. Luckily I learned a long time ago to get my boot in the door as soon as it opened. It bounced back after slamming into my CAT boots, making a slight ‘sproing’ sound. I pushed my way into the house and grabbed the collar of his shirt. He reached his arm back to take a swing at me, and I pulled down on the shirt while lifting my knee. His forehead slammed into it, dazing him. I pushed him onto the ground and got my knee into his back, ignoring the pain on my patella that meant I would probably end up with quite a bruise the next day. Pulling handcuffs from my pocket, I secured his arms behind his back, then looked up when I heard clapping.

“Nice job Bomber,” Lester praised. “Couldn’t have done it smoother myself.” 

I smiled back at him. “Thanks for helping to train me in hand-to-hand combat. Seems it came in handy.”

Carlin groaned from the floor, and I reached down to yank him to his feet.

“Oh, let me have the honors, Beautiful?” Lester asked. “You took him down so well I didn’t get to rough him up at all.”

I laughed a bit at that, then stepped back, making a ‘he’s all yours’ gesture. Lester grabbed Carlin’s arms and yanked up roughly, straining his shoulders as he yelped and struggled to his feet. “Your car or mine?” Lester said, pushing Carlin out the door. 

“Put him in yours. I have to make a quick stop at WaWa before we get to Marie’s house. I’ll meet you in the parking lot, then we can head to the station.”

Lester nodded. “Get me a coffee will you?” Then he shoved Carlin out the door, who desperately tried to keep his feet under him as he stumbled out.

I closed the door, twisting the knob lock so the house would be more secure, and practically skipped back to my car. I got in, and I heard a distinct grunt as Lester shoved Carlin into the SUV, banging his shoulder hard against the frame. 

I have heard other parts of the country don’t have WaWas. They don’t know what they are missing. It’s an awesome convenience store, with Fee-Free ATMs, a deli counter, fruit smoothies, premade snacks and lunches of both the healthy and unhealthy variety, chocolate pudding with bits of cookie dough to mix in, their own line of drinks, and almost every store has a large display of TastyKakes. 

I grabbed a box of Butterscotch Krimpets and a peach pie, then wandered over to the baked goods shelf. Marie’s story about the chocolate melted in her underwear made the Boston Creme’s look far less appetizing than usual, so instead I grabbed a cream filled coffee cake muffin. A quick stop at the coffee section and the pay counter and I was out the door.

Lester was waiting in the lot for me as I came out. Somehow he had managed to get a prime spot right in front, despite the lot being mostly full. He rolled down the window and I handed him his coffee.

“Thanks Beautiful. What flavor did you get me?”

“Cuban roast, of course. What else would I get you?” I bit into my muffin, hoping to keep the inevitable crumbs outside of my car.

Lester laughed. Then reached out to wipe a bit of the cream off my nose. I froze at the touch, and he did too.

“I’ll meet you at the station, OK?” I said quickly, then scampered back to my car, wondering if the butterflies in my stomach were nerves from my upcoming job, or something else.

Marie

I can’t believe this is my life. I made one little mistake. ONE! And now I’m a fugitive from the law. But not a cool fugitive like Harrison Ford. No, I’m the fugitive who gets depressed, stops leaving the house, and sees a schoolmate for the first time in more than a decade while looking like she was kidnapped by wildebeest and has been roaming the plains, surviving on grass.

Yeah. That’s my life now.

Honestly, I suppose I’m lucky that it was Stephanie picking me up. I imagine most bounty hunters wouldn’t have left me alone so I could shower and change, let alone bring me non-chocolate junk food and apparently a hot guy. I might be going back to the Courthouse, but at least I was keeping my dignity mostly intact.

I had just put the finishing touches on my hair when I got a text from Stephanie that they would be there in a few minutes. I wasn’t wearing anything fancy, just nice jeans and a red top, but at least my hair was clean and combed. I’d had to condition it three times to get it into a manageable state, then wash it again to get out all the conditioning residue. By the time I’d finished, I’d had to rush to make sure I was at least halfway decent before leaving the house.

I saw Stephanie pull up in a beaten down Toyota, and a large black SUV park right behind her. I slipped out the door so no one could see my living room, then turned around to lock the house. When I turned back to face the street my breath caught in my throat. Stephanie wasn’t kidding, this guy was seriously hot. I tried my best to not look like a complete idiot as I walked to the car, glad I’d picked a pair of basic boots instead of heels.

“Hey Marie. You’re looking happier.”

I nodded silently, not trusting myself to speak without babbling like a compleat idiot.

“I’ll call Vinnie and have him meet us at the courthouse, he can bond you right out again, and you’ll be home in a couple hours.” I nodded again, then looked up at her.

“Wait, a couple hours? I thought I’d be in and out in a few minutes. Will you stay there with me, how will I get home?” I started to panic a bit. I really needed a sugar hit.

Stephanie seemed to read my mind, so she handed me the WaWa bag. I pulled out a Butterscotch Krimpet and put half of one in my mouth.

The handsome man grinned at me. Lord, he’s even hotter when he smiles. “I’ll take care of it Steph.” He pulled a card out of his pocket. It simply said ‘Lester Santos’, and had a phone number on it. “Call me when you get out, and I’ll give you a ride home. You can pay me back by splitting the peach pie with me.” Then he whispered in my ear, “I do love to eat peaches. They taste so...sensual.”

I’m pretty sure I said something, but I’m also pretty sure it was nonsensical. I got into Stephanie’s car, blushing like I hadn’t since my prom night when Danny Bartaloski and I had performed some very awkward groping on each other in an attempt to have sex for the first time.

Stephanie smiled at me. “He’s charming, but he’s a tease. I think he likes you, just don’t expect him to stick around.”

I decided I could live with that. And all of the sudden I was really glad I’d stolen that chocolate.

Stephanie

I sent Vinnie a quick text telling him to meet us at the station so he could get Marie bonded out as soon as possible. Then I crossed my fingers and started the car, hoping against hope it would start properly and we wouldn’t have to beg a ride from Lester. He’d be happy to do it, and he was going to follow me anyway, but it would be freakin humiliating.

Marie kept grilling me about Lester the entire drive to the police station. What was he like, what were his hobbies, did he look even better naked than he did clothed. I admitted to some knowledge of the first two, and limited knowledge of the second. I’d never seen Lester naked, but I had seen him working out shirtless and in shorts. He wasn’t Ranger level of hot, but that was a bar high enough for a giraffe to limbo under.

“Look, Marie. Have fun with Lester if you want, just don’t expect him to stick around for life. Or even a week. He’s a flirt and a player, don’t let him break your heart.”

She glanced at me. “Are you warning me off for my sake, or because you like him?”

Her look wasn’t challenging, it was curious. I blushed a little. “My life is complicated enough right now. Lester’s great but he’s…” I stopped talking. Yeah, I knew Marie a little, but not enough to talk to her about this stuff. She’d been a bit of a gossip in High School. I didn’t know if she still was, but I really didn’t want my complicated feelings providing more fuel for the Burg grapevine.

“There’s someone else,” she said sagely. “Lester’s great, but you have feelings for someone else.” She looked at me again, and I felt a little like I had been stripped bare. She seemed to see right through me.

Luckily, at that point we arrived at the TPD. I jumped out of the car a little faster than was strictly necessary for a capture I bought off with a box of TastyKakes. I opened the door for her, then walked her into the station.

When I had received my body receipt I walked back out to the parking lot and approached Lester’s car. “Do you want to stay with Marie until she gets out?” I asked, a knowing glint in my eye. 

Lester smiled at me, raising one eyebrow in that way that everyone I knew could, except for me. “My job today is to stay with you, Beautiful. Strict orders to assist in your skips so your caseload is clear, and then take you back to Rangeman for target practice.”

I nodded, then went back to my car and drove to Haywood, the black SUV trailing behind me.


	5. Target Practice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stephanie practices at the Range,

Stephanie

When I got to Rangeman I went straight to the firing range. My gun was home in the cookie jar, but I knew there would be plenty available. Ranger would be upset, but not surprised, that I wasn’t carrying. If I was working for him for the next week, I would have to keep my gun with me. Sometimes I wonder if the only reason he hired me was so he could force me to carry a gun. 

I grabbed a Sig Sauer from the gun cabinet and proceeded to load it, practicing taking the magazine out and putting it back in 10 times before grabbing ear protectors and goggles. Lester came in after me and grabbed ear & eye protection as well. I spread my legs shoulder width apart, raised my gun, and fired at the paper target.

I had learned how to shoot with a .38 revolver, and was having a little trouble adjusting to the larger gun. It weighed almost twice as much, and my arms ached from holding it up too long. I’m usually a pretty good shot, but my aim goes downhill fast once I get tired.

After emptying the clip, I pushed the button to bring the target close to me. It was a full 6 feet long, and had an outline of a man on it. While I had been aiming at the bullseye on the chest, this guy had holes all over. He looked like he was dressing up as a spaghetti strainer for Halloween. 

Lester

Bomber was having trouble with her aim, so I stood behind her to help her with her stance. I put my body against hers to help guide her, first turning her slightly, then adjusting her arms. I swear it was innocent, at least, that was my intention. I just wanted to help her shoot better. But having her pressed up against me, firing a gun while I helped her shoot straight….

I turned my hips slightly so that I could try to hide my body’s sudden betrayal. Steph was awesome, she was beautiful and smart and tough as nails, but still kind to everyone at Rangeman. She saw the best in people. A man would have to be crazy to not like her. Or, in the case of my idiot cousin, crazy to love her and not just fucking tell her. Everyone in Trenton knew how he felt about her. You don’t spend as much time and money as he does protecting someone you don’t love. Hell, he’s brave enough to walk into a room knowing he’s going to get shot to protect her, but he can’t just ask her out for fucking dinner unless he makes it about work.

Steph seemed to sense my change in mood, but kindly ignored my embarrassing reaction. Her aim did improve, though. She wasn’t hitting the bullseye all the time, but at least all the holes were in the torso.

After an hour and a half of practice her hands were shaking with exhaustion. She’d improved for the first few clips, but after that she got worse as she struggled to keep her arms up and straight. Still, the point was as much about getting her used to her gun as it was about target practice.

My phone rang and I answered it, though I didn’t recognize the number. I had a suspicion who it was.

“Hi, Lester? It’s Marie, from earlier.”

I grinned. “I remember. How are you doing? Judge decide not to lock you up and throw away the key for Grand Theft Cocoa?”

“Yeah, they’re letting me go again. Um, were you serious about giving me a ride home? I mean, I could probably get a friend to pick me up after work or something….”

“No, I’ll come get you.” Bomber smiled at me. “I’ll be there in 10 minutes.” I hung up.

Bomber rolled her eyes. “What?” I asked.

“You guys have such terrible phone manners! Have you all always been like this? Did you spend your teenage years hanging up on girls? Or is Ranger just contagious?”

I laughed and threw an arm around her shoulder, kissing the top of her head. “It’s an eternal mystery. I’ll see you later, Beautiful. I’m sure there are lots of searches upstairs for you, since we’re all up to our ears in work with the rally only a couple weeks away.”

“Where is it going to be, anyway? I just know an open space in Philly.”

“In front of the art museum. If you want, I bet you'd be able to find the time the week before to check the place out. Lots of nudes in there.”

She ruffled my hair, then jokingly pushed me out the door. I grinned, then went off to take Marie home. I wondered if she had any plans for dinner. I bet going to jail makes you work up a real appetite for Italian food. Or maybe even Cuban.

Marie

I stood outside the station, more nervous than I would like to admit. Here I was, getting picked up by the hottest guy I’d seen in a year, and he was meeting me in front of the police station. How utterly embarrassing.

The butterflies in my stomach morphed into galloping lizards as I saw the SUV come around the corner. Lester pulled up, passenger side facing me. He hopped out with surprising grace, then walked around and opened the door for me. He held out a hand to help me up into the seat, then kissed the back of mine before letting it go. I was a little out of practice, but I’m pretty sure that was some heavy duty flirting. 

Once we got on the road he flashed me a quick grin. “So, I hope your time in jail hasn’t hardened you. You aren’t going to shank me if I ask you out to dinner, are you?”

I giggled. Actually giggled! What am I? 10?

“Depends on where you ask to take me. If it’s to a decent place, no. Cluck-in-a-bucket? Maybe. I can make a mean toothbrush knife now.” This was fun. It’s been a long time since I got to be so silly and flirty at the same time.

“Well, I was thinking of asking you to this little Cuban place I know, but I don’t want to risk getting stabbed by personal hygiene products.”

“That sounds great. What time?”

“I get off work at 6. How about I pick you up at 6:30. That will give me time to shower and get dressed.”

“That sounds great, but not like a lot of time. Are you a super-speedy showerer?”

We stopped at a light, and he gave me a look that made my heartbeat speed up and my eyes dilate. “Depends. On my own, yes. With company?” His voice dropped to a husky whisper. “With company I always take my time.” He lifted my hand to his lips again, this time letting his tongue slip gently between my fingers, lightly caressing the skin. The sensation made me think about what else his tongue could do, and I started to blush. He smiled as the light turned green and he made a right into the Burg. “Besides, my apartment is in the office, several of us live there for convenience and so we can respond to emergencies quickly.”

When we pulled in front of my house, he again opened my door for me and extended a hand to help me down. When I landed on the sidewalk he spun me into a dip, his face inches over mine, looking for permission for a kiss. I lifted my head to his and parted my lips, and his gently pressed into mine. As I opened my mouth more the kiss deepened, and soon I was lost in the sensation of being pressed against this gorgeous man. I ran my hand along his bicep, feeling the rock-hard muscle that didn’t seem to be straining at all to hold me up.

I don’t know if the kiss lasted a minute or half an hour, but when he straightened up I decided I was really looking forward to tonight.

“I’ll see you in a few hours, querida. Make sure to wear shoes you can dance in.” He got back in the car and headed out, leaving me flustered on the sidewalk.

Something he had said suddenly clicked. “A few hours”. Shit! My house was an absolute wreck, and if he lives at work, I didn’t know if he would be allowed to bring someone home. And after that kiss, I really wanted to head home with him. It had been months since I’d had sex, and that guy couldn’t kiss nearly as well as Lester.

I rushed into the house, and started to clean. Most guys don’t care a lot about how a house looked, so I concentrated on just making it a bit less of a health hazard. Dishes in the sink, papers put in the recycling, a quick run through with a vacuum. Then I went upstairs to change clothes and get gussied up.


	6. First Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lester and Marie go on a date, leading to the first sex scene of the story, but by no means the last.

Marie

As Lester said, he knocked on my door at precisely 6:30. He looked even better than he did in his work clothes. His hair was still damp from a shower, and he was wearing an indigo dress shirt and black slacks. I was in a bright red dress with a wide skirt for dancing, and solid heels for stability. His eyes turned dark when he looked at me, and I could imagine what he must be thinking, because I’m pretty sure I was thinking it too. 

When we got to the restaurant I chickened out and decided to skip some of the more exotic dishes. Instead I got beef empanadas. Lester got some dish with rice and chicken that looked pretty good as well. The food was tasty, but I was more interested in the dancing that took place on the other side of the restaurant. When we had finished our food we headed over to the dance floor. I expected Lester to be a great dancer. I wasn’t disappointed.

I’m usually decent at dancing, but had never done the Salsa before. Lester moved like a cat, he had complete control over every muscle in his body and each motion had a quiet grace. He spun me around and dipped me like he had in front of my house, we shimmied and shook. When the music slowed down he wrapped his arms around my waist, and I could feel the bulge that said he was enjoying this as much as me. I was having a lot of fun, but I was tired of waiting. 

I whispered in his ear, “I’m having a great time, but let’s go back to my place.” His eyes grew black, and he kissed me, then rushed to our table, threw a hundred down, grabbed my purse, then took my hand as we raced back to his car.

_____________________________________________

We had barely gotten through my door when our hands were all over each other. I worked to undo the buttons of his shirt while he yanked at the zipper on my back. He pulled back for a second, framing my hands in his face. “Do you want this as much as I do? I don’t want to pressure you. I’ll stop if you ask.”

I responded by pulling his face to mine and kissing him even harder. Then I felt my body being lifted up like I was no heavier than a child and he carried me up the stairs. I gestured to my bedroom, and soon was deposited on the sheets. 

“I hope that was OK, but once we get started I don’t want to stop, and you deserve better than a couch.”

I responded by pulling my dress off. He removed his shirt and holy shit did he look good without it. His muscles rippled with each movement. No wonder he could pick me up so easily, I bet he could lift a horse if necessary. My hands trailed down his chest, pinching the nipples. He moaned and proceeded to lay a trail of kisses down from my lips, to my pulsepoint, to my collarbone. With one hand he reached behind my back and deftly undid my bra. Meanwhile I was digging my fingers into the hard muscles of his back, sliding them down almost to his ass, which I suspected would be spectacular. 

His mouth clamped on my nipple and I arched my back as he started to suck gently. My fingers scrambled to get to his belt, and I fumbled to undo the buckle without seeing it. I could feel the fabric straining against him, and I was aching to have him inside me. 

He switched to my other nipple, and helped me by undoing the button and carefully lowering the zipper, then kicking the pants off. I had to stretch to reach him, but once I got my right hand around his cock he started to moan. “Oh, querida, that feels amazing.” His lips left my breast and trailed down further, marking every inch or so with a small kiss. As he scooted down he slipped out of my reach, so I ran my fingers through his hair instead. I gasped for air as he took my button in his mouth, exploring it with his tongue. 

My breath was coming faster, and I moaned at the sensation. He took one finger and gently probed me, pushing in and swirling his finger around. I was so wet I must be drenching him, and soon another finger joined the first. Then a third. I was aching with pleasure, and wanted to return the favor.

“Oh, Lester. That feels so good,” I gasped out. “I want to return the favor. Let’s pleasure each other.” His eyes looked up at me, though his tongue didn’t stop doing its magic. They were filled with lust and longing. He pulled away for just a moment, though it felt like a lifetime.

“Are you sure? You aren’t obligated to do anything. This turns me on so much, querida.” He said while curling his fingers inside me and resuming his ministrations. 

“Get over here.” I practically growled.

He rotated his body so his torso lined up with mine, and turned us both onto our sides. He lay his head on my thigh as he nuzzled me, his face slick with my juices. I stared at his cock, throbbing with excitement. It wouldn’t all fit in my mouth, but I took the head in my lips and ran my tongue along the ridge. He shuddered as I touched him, and he muttered something I couldn’t understand, either because it was in Spanish or because his voice was muffled by my pussy. 

I gripped the base of his dick and gave it several strong strokes, lapping at the salty precum that was dribbling from him. He groaned again, and pushed into me harder. It became a feedback loop of pleasure, the more he stroked me, the more I stroked him. Pressure built up inside me, and I clamped down my legs as an orgasm exploded through me, trapping his head. He went along for the ride, never stopping his movements. I tried to stay aware enough not to bite down on him, but I did graze him with my teeth slightly. I kept licking as the waves crashed over me, until I heard him mumble, “Dios, querida. I can’t hold it in any longer!” He tried to turn his hips away to pull himself from my mouth, but I held him where he was, sucking on him until he exploded into me. 

I pulled on him to get the last few spurts, then looked down at his face. He was smiling widely, looking utterly content. Then he came up and kissed me, mingling our juices together, the salty and the sweet. “That was amazing, querida,” he said, his voice husky and breathless. “And now, how about I show you just how slow I take it in the shower?

This was turning out to be a pretty good night.


	7. Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stephanie has an epiphany, and it will change her life forever.

Stephanie

A few hours earlier

After a long session at the range I was actually looking forward to sitting at a desk for a few hours. My hands and shoulders were aching, and I wanted to do something that wouldn’t involve upper body strength for a while.

As usual my inbox was filled with search requests for Rodriguez. I’d never actually met the man, but he accounted for about 80% of my workload at Rangeman. I wasn’t sure if I should hate him or thank him for the fact that I’d been able to pay my rent some months. I worked for a few hours, grabbing a snack from the kitchen when I started to get hungry.

My cell rang as I settled back into my desk. I held it to my shoulder as I ate with one hand and typed with another. “Hello?” I asked, my mouth full of sandwich.

“Hey, Cupcake. What you up to tonight? Want to grab dinner?”

“You must have read my mind. I’m starving, but I have something I want to finish up before I leave.” An idea struck me. “Want to watch a movie? I’m having an urge to see Rocky.”

Joe seemed surprised at that. “Sure Cupcake. I’ll pick up subs and grab the DVD and Bob from home. Bob misses you, so do the boys.” I rolled my eyes at that. Talking about his genitals like they were separate people was a little creepy.

“OK, see you around 8?”

“Got it Cupcake. See you soon.” He hung up. I looked at the clock. Still an hour before I needed to leave, time enough to do one more search.

I started to work, and must have gotten really involved in what I was looking at. Suddenly I realized it was 7:50, and I’d have to rush if I wanted to get home in time. I grabbed my things (including my gun, since Ranger insisted I carry when I was working for him), and raced to the elevator. I actually considered taking the stairs, since that would mean I wouldn’t have to wait, but the elevator dinged and I rushed inside. I pressed the button to go to the parking garage, and jiggled my foot as I waited to descend.

I managed to get home just 5 minutes late. Morelli and Bob were waiting for me in my kitchen. He looked a little annoyed at my lateness, but I didn’t feel too bad. He had a key, it wasn’t like he had to wait out in the hall.

I grabbed a roll of paper towels and set up plates on the coffee table. “Did you bring the movie?”

“Yeah. Kind of surprised you want to watch a boxing movie. Normally you just want to watch Ghostbusters”

“There’s a scene in there I want to look at.” I popped the DVD into the player and settled in for dinner and a movie.

After a while my shoulders started to ache. “Joe, can you give me a neck rub?”

“Sure, Cupcake. Sit in front of me.”

I settled down between his legs. He began to massage my sore shoulders, working the tension out of the tired muscles. I’m also pretty sure he agreed because it would give him a good look down my shirt.

“You’ve got a lot more knots here than usual. You doing pushups like Rocky today?” The training montage had begun, the part I really wanted to see. Rocky running, Rocky doing one armed pushups, and Rocky climbing the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum, where I would be guarding the President. I grabbed the remote and paused it, then rewound and watched again, getting a feel for the space, where threats could come from, entrances and exits. I watched it 4 times, absorbing every detail I could. That wasn’t all that much, especially with footage so old, but it gave me a way to visualize the space before I went there.

I realized Morelli wasn’t rubbing my shoulders anymore. I looked up and he was staring quizzically at me. “Cupcake, why are you staring at Sylvester Stallone?”

“I’m not. I’m looking at the area around the Art Museum.”

He raised an eyebrow at me. “Taking up architecture as a hobby?” 

“No. I have a job there in a couple weeks.” He continued to look skeptical. “The President is having a rally in front of the Art Museum on Halloween. There are so many rallies going on in the region that the Secret Service is stretched thin and bringing in Rangeman to help with security. Since some of the men have criminal records, I get to be one of the guards.”

Morelli was silent for a full 15 seconds, then burst out laughing. “You? You, are going to guard the President?”

I narrowed my eyes. “What’s so funny about that?”

He kept laughing. “Oh Cupcake, the President who has been the subject of more threats than any in history, has you for security. This country is in a lot of trouble. ”

I stared at Morelli. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. You should be excited for me.”

“Cupcake, this is about Manoso trying to get in your pants and nothing more. I can see him getting a contract, but I can’t see the Eastern Seaboard’s worst bounty hunter being allowed within a half mile of the President, let alone on his security detail. You attract disaster. He may end up getting hit by a meteor or something.”

I pulled away and stared at Morelli. I stared a long time, and I saw something, something I should have seen years ago. Morelli was never going to support me in what I wanted to do. He claimed to love me, but he cut me down at every opportunity. It was little things. The biting comments, the subtle put-downs, the gaslighting. I wanted to fly, and he wanted to tie me down.

“I think you should leave.” I whispered.

“Oh come on, Cupcake. You know as well as I do that this is insane.”

“I’m not kidding, Joe. I want you to leave.”

“Dammit Steph. Look, how about I make it up to you. I bet I can make you happy.” He wiggled his eyebrows at me and reached for my breasts. 

I pushed him away. “Get your hands off me and get out. I mean it.”

Morelli crossed his arms and sat back on the couch. “No, this is just some crazy scheme by Manoso to get you into bed, and you can’t see it. There is no way the Secret Service will put you on staff, contractor or not.”

“Fine. Stay. But I’m leaving.” I got up, dodging his hands as he reached for me. I grabbed my purse and went out the door, Morelli cursing up a storm and Bob howling behind me.

\--------------------

I went downstairs to the parking lot and got into my car, not sure where I was going, but needing to be away. My first thought was to go to my parent’s house, but it was past 9 at night, and I didn’t have the energy to stand up to my mother’s questions. I could go to Lula’s, but her place was tiny and she snored like a bulldozer in need of a tune-up. 

There really was only one place to go. I put on my turn signal and headed for Haywood.

Ranger

It had been a long 12 hours. I’d been meeting with the Secret Service advance team to plan security. The open space was both a help and a hindrance. There wasn’t a place for an assassin to hide to get off a shot for a quarter mile, and the rooms facing the park at the closest hotel would be reserved for security, campaign staff, and other people we had control over.

The main problem was that while there wasn’t a good place for an assassin to hide, there also wasn’t a good place to put rooftop security snipers. The Art Museum had a sharply pitched roof, the only way to have someone up there would be to have them suspended by ropes. They would be highly visible, and the sight of rooftop snipers tends to make a crowd nervous.

We had decided to make a temporary structure of scaffolding that would serve as both a platform for security, and a safe place for the President to both enter and exit. We had gone over the staff from Rangeman who would be working the event. They had expressed some surprise at Stephanie, since she had no military or police background, but I told them about her uncanny instincts for sensing when something was out of place. She would be working the crowd, looking for people who might be a threat. 

Luckily Frank, one of my newest hires, backed me up on my selection. Frank had been with the Secret Service until 6 months ago. The Sequester meant that he had taken a pay cut, and he had a large family to support, including an ailing mother. Private security paid better, had more flexible hours, and Trenton was far cheaper to live in DC. He had helped us get the contract for the event, and knew the guys still with the agency that we were working with.

“Well, Gentlemen, I believe this has been a productive day. I’ll see you in three days in Philadelphia. We can do more then.” We shook hands, and I took the stairs, leaving the elevator for our guests.

As I was taking the stairs anyway, I decided to make a quick stop at my office to grab some paperwork. This project would eat up a tremendous amount of staff time, so I wanted to get a jump on the workload. 

I passed Binkie looking at the monitors. “Anything unusual going on?”

“Nothing much, except that Bomber is in the gun range.”

I stopped at that news. “Alone?” I asked. Babe hated using guns, generally one of us had to drag her in there. I looked at the monitor. It was Steph alright. The floor around her was littered with shells, and there were empty boxes of ammo on the shelf in front of her, as well as a stack of full ones. Something must be off, there was no other explanation for her being in the range at 2200 hours.

“How long has she been there?” I asked Binkie.

“Almost an hour. Came in a little after 2100.”

“How did she look? Was she upset?”

“Not sure. She didn’t look at the camera much. Had her hair down until she got in there, it covered her face enough to hide any emotions. I figured if she wanted that privacy, I would give it to her.”

I nodded, then headed for the range myself. If Steph was here this late, she had a reason.

\------------

Normally I rather enjoy sneaking up behind Steph. Having her turn around to face me in the chest, or watching her realize I’m there a moment before I put my hand on her neck is often the highlight of my day. But I know far better than to creep up on someone who is upset and holding a gun. So I looked through the small window in the door to the range until she ran out of bullets, and opened the door while she ejected the magazine to reload.

“Babe.” I said, louder than usual because of the ear protection. She looked over at me, and I saw the tension on her face fall away, then suddenly return. She pulled off her earmuffs and shook her hair loose.

“Hey Ranger. I hope you don’t mind, I needed some stress relief.”

I stepped towards her, resisting the urge to pick her up, press her against the wall, and bury myself in her. Instead I brushed her hair back gently behind her ear.

“Is there a reason for this late night visit? Shouldn’t you be home eating junk food with Morelli?”

The instant I said his name I regretted it. As it left my mouth, I realized I didn’t want to talk about him. I didn’t want to remind her of him, it was always thought of him that made her pull away from me.

And a second later it got worse. The lines at the edges of her eyes tightened, and she closed them, turning her head away. I gently put a finger under her chin to guide her to look at me. “Babe?”

She shook her head and started to reload the magazine. “Babe, what’s wrong?” 

“I don’t want to talk about it,” she whispered, fumbling with the bullets. I surreptitiously pushed the button on my key fob to scramble the camera. This could get ugly, and she wouldn’t want Binkie watching.

It was at that point I noticed the target she was shooting at. I pushed the button to bring it in, and nearly choked trying not to laugh. It had started as our standard 6 foot outline of a man, but Stephanie had drawn it with a Sharpie. Now it had dark hair a shade too long, a sardonic grin, and a speech bubble with a crude picture of a cupcake on it. And where the crotch would be, there was nothing but a giant hole. It seems Stephanie had gotten better with her SIG p250. Assuming she hadn’t ever missed the target completely, every bullet had hit its mark, even if that wasn’t the standard bullseye in the torso.

“Relationship issues?” I asked. It was a rhetorical question. The late hour, the attempt to hold back tears, and the castrated paper Morelli all made that pretty obvious. “Want to talk about it?”

She bit her lip. Then asked quietly “Why did you ask me to do that job this morning?”

I blinked at her. “Because you’re smart, you have good instincts, and I trust you completely. And Babe, you know there’s only a few people I trust in this world. Most of them I served with. A couple of family members. And you. That’s it. So why wouldn’t I bring you in on an important job?”

She whispered something so low I couldn’t hear her. “Babe?”

She spoke up a little, the words coming fast, like the was trying to get them over with. “Morelli said it was just a way for you to try to get in my pants. That I was the worst bounty hunter on the Eastern Seaboard, that I attract disaster, and that the President would probably get hit by a meteor, so no one in their right mind would let me near him.”

I was shocked. How could he claim to love her, but say those things? I pulled her into my arms, stroking her hair as she sobed. I murmured softly to her in Spanish, knowing she couldn’t understand me, but desperately wanting to comfort her. 

_Lo siento, Babe. No tendría que haber dicho esas cosas a ti. Eres brillante e inteligente y amable y la luz de mi mundo. Te quiero mucho. Las estrellas están en sus ojos, y que idiota tiene la cabeza en el culo si no puede verlo._ (I'm sorry, Babe. He shouldn't have said those things to you. You are brilliant and smart and kind and the light of my world. I love you so much. The stars are in your eyes, and that idiot has his head up his ass if he can't see it.)

It’s funny how I can actually tell her I love her when I know she can’t understand me. Sometimes I tell her when I’m watching her sleep. Sometimes I tell her when I’m looking at her trackers. But I can’t seem to tell her when she’s actually in the room with me. At least not in a way that she’ll understand.

I nuzzled her hair. It smelled of her shampoo and gunpowder. An unusual mix, to be sure, but the perfect perfume to drive me wild. _Get control of yourself Manoso._

I knelt down on one knee to look up her, holding her hands in mine. “Babe, are you going to be OK?

She closed her eyes and turned her head away from me, but didn’t pull her hands away. “Yeah, I’m just so tired of never feeling like I can do anything right. He’s always putting me down.”

“Always?” I thought back to all the times I had seen Morelli with her after a car blew up, or she got kidnapped, or a skip got rough. He’s never been as kind and supportive as I’d have thought he should be, but a lot of that I chalked up to him trying to play the Alpha Male when I was around. I figured he was gentle, softer, when they were alone. I knew Stephanie brought out that side of me.

“Babe, what do you mean he’s always putting you down?”

“It’s the little things. Comments about my job, about how I give him ulcers, and why can’t I just get a normal job, or marry him and be a housewife like his mother and grandmother and pop out babies.”

I put on my ‘blank face’. I was angry, hell. I was livid. But I wanted her to keep talking. “Go on, Babe. What else does he say?”

“It’s so hard to pin down, because any little comment seems so petty on its own. But put together, and I realize he’s been chipping away at my self esteem from the moment we started dating. Hell, from the time we played choo-choo!”

“Choo-choo?” This was a new one.

“Yeah. When I was six and he was eight. We went into his father’s garage, I took off my panties, and I was the tunnel and he was the train.”

My body went completely rigid. It took all my control to stay calm. “You mean, he crawled between your legs and looked up at you?”

She blushed. “No, his hands were the train. He said he got to be the train because only girls had tunnels.”

I was torn between wanting to storm out of the building and team Morelli limb from limb, and wanting to hold her to my chest and never let go. 

“I’m so sorry, Babe.” She finally looked at me. 

“Sorry for what? That I was a slut all the way back in Kindergarten?”

I winced inwardly at her self recrimination. “No, I’m sorry I didn’t see what he was doing to you before. What he’s doing to you now, what he’s been doing to you for 25 years apparently, is NOT OK. It’s abuse. It’s manipulative, and designed to wear you down so you won’t stand up to him.”

I stood up and looked deep into those blue eyes that meant the world to me. “If I’d known how he was treating you I would never have sent you back to him.” I took a deep breath. It was time to tell her the truth. “It was the biggest mistake of my life, and believe me, I have made many. I thought I was doing the right thing. I thought he could give you what you wanted, needed. I thought I had far too much bad Karma to deserve you. I’ve been kicking myself ever since. But I thought what I had done was bad for me. I never realized how much it hurt you.”

There. I had said it. I’m not an emotionally expressive guy, but looking into those blue eyes I found myself unable to stop. And that’s when she kissed me.

It was hot and deep and full of passion. Her hands wrapped around my back and pulled me desperately close to her. My body responded immediately, my dick pressing hard into her stomach. I wanted so badly to tear off her clothes, but I was determined to do this right.

“Babe,” I said, pulling away. She looked at me, hurt in her eyes.

“Don’t you want me?” she asked in a soft voice, looking unsure of herself. Morelli had done a real number on her.

“I want you desperately, but not like this. You’re vulnerable and emotionally raw, and I can’t bear the thought of you thinking I took advantage of you. If we make love, and you regret it, I don’t know what it would do to me.”

“Dammit, Ranger. I want this, and I know you do too.”

“Oh, trust me Babe, I want it. How about this, you come up to 7 and spend the night. We’ll fall asleep in each other’s arms. In the morning, we both can think more clearly.”

She nodded and wiped away a stray tear. Then she took my hand and we walked to the elevator, me scrambling cameras all along the way. She looked frail and puffy, anyone watching would be able to tell she had been crying. 

3 minutes later we were in my apartment. She had kicked off her shoes and gone into my dressing room, emerging wearing one of my t-shirts. I had changed into my black silk boxers. We lay on the bed and she was asleep within 30 seconds. I curled up next to her, my body spooning hers, and wondered how in the world I would be able to keep my hands to myself until morning. Turning away a horny Stephanie was harder than I could have imagined, but I was determined not to fuck this up.

“Te amo, Babe.” I whispered as I fell asleep holding her.


	8. Awakening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ranger and Stephanie wake up together. Then they fuck a lot.

Stephanie

I was in a strange dream about wandering in a dark jungle. There was a light ahead, and I was trying to get to it, but there was brush and undergrowth in the way. Then the darkness was pierced by a high pitched beep, filling the forest with a really annoying sound.

I opened my eyes to realize it was Ranger’s watch going off. He was gently extricating himself from being wrapped around me, our bodies pressed together and his face in my hair. The clock said it was 4:30 and I was going to go back to sleep when the night before came crashing back. I tightened up as the emotions hit me like a literal punch to the stomach, and I curled up tighter into a ball.

“Babe?” he asked. He sounded concerned. I had so many emotions roiling around in my head and I just couldn’t deal with them quite yet. “Babe.” He said again, this time more forcefully. 

I reached my arm back to touch him, my hand landing on his thigh. “I just….I don’t think I’m ready to figure out last night yet. I think I have a lot to process.” I turned over to face him, our noses barely touching and my forehead pressed against his. I whispered to him “Do you have to go? Can you stay here with me? At least for a little while?”

“Sure, Babe.” He wrapped an arm around me and gently rubbed my back. It was comforting and intimate, but not sexual. 

I thought about the night before. “Thank you. For last night. For caring for me, for keeping me safe, for letting me know I’m not crazy.”

He chuckled lightly. “I don’t know if I’d say you aren’t crazy. You’re here with me, that’s not the action of a sane woman.” Then his voice sobered. “Aside from caring for me, which I still don’t understand, you need to know you’re not crazy. I’m so sorry I didn’t realize what he was doing to you. I can’t ever make up for it, but I can promise it won’t happen anymore.”

I nodded slightly, then started to cry as I thought back to every hurtful thing Joe had ever said to me. I reached my arm around Ranger and held him to me. The scent of his Bvlgari still clung to him, surrounding me just as much as his body was.

“How could I have been so blind for so long? How did I not notice all the things he said to me? All those subtle little jabs at me. And when something upset me, just blowing me off as being a damned cupcake?”

I looked at Ranger, his eyes just barely visible in the dark room. “Are you actually asking me?” He inquired, hesitantly. It was strange, normally he never hesitates with anything.”

“Do you know?” I responded. Did Ranger know me better than I knew myself?

He tilted his head slightly, giving me a gentle kiss. “I have a theory. Morelli interacts with you in much the same way your mother does. Your mom loves you, but constantly criticizes your life. So when Morelli does the same thing, you interpret it the same way. Everyone you’ve loved, aside from your crazy Grandma, has been trying to tie you down your whole life. Since it’s all you’ve ever known, you can’t see the shackles.”

“Almost.”

“Almost, Babe?”

“ _Almost_ everyone I have ever loved has tried to tie me down. You don’t tie me down, you give me a rope ladder.”

“Babe.”

‘Babe’ covered a lot of territory for Ranger. I’m pretty good at reading them usually, this one I wasn’t sure of. Hope? Concern? Maybe it didn’t matter. He loved me, in his own way. And I loved him, I’d known it since Scrog. Ranger had made it clear he couldn’t be what he thought I wanted. But suddenly that didn’t matter anymore. I would take him anyway I could. I would take the man I could barely have who lifted me up, rather than the one who tried to keep me by tearing me down.

I ran a hand through his hair, pulling him closer to me. Then I hooked my leg behind his hip and pressed us together. Our lips met, and then I didn’t know where my mouth ended and his began. He rolled so that I was on top of him, wrapped his arms around my back, and the world fell away. 

Ranger

Stephanie and I have a long, complicated, and far too sparse sexual history. There was the night I bargained for by helping her capture Eddie DeChooch. I’d been trying to find a way through the sexual tension, and I thought making that bargain might break the ice. It was not a nice move, but as I’ve told her more than once, I’m not a nice guy. At least, I didn’t used to be.

Sleeping with her didn’t get her out of my system like I’d hoped. Instead it burrowed her deeper in. Like an idiot I told her to fix her relationship with the cop, and then suddenly I realized she’d been within my grasp, and I hadn’t just let her slip away, I’d dropped her like a hot shell casing.

Then there was the Vordo. Some weird Italian voodoo that Babe said Morelli’s Grandma Bella put on her to make her horny. I had never properly thanked Grandma Bella for that; I should have sent her a gift. Maybe a fruit basket. With an all-expense paid trip to Tahiti.

That time in an alley in my Turbo is probably the most vulnerable I’ve ever let myself get while having sex. Broad daylight, in a confined space, with my back to Stark Street. But after wanting to have her again for months, finally getting a taste of her in my apartment, and her being so ready and willing, there was no way I was going to say no. There was a part of me that didn’t care if I got shot in the head if it meant I got to be inside her again. 

That recklessness reared its ugly, though satisfying, head again in a broom closet when we were doing a little B&E. I’d tried to not get so turned on, but being pressed up against her was more than even my control could take. In situations like that, it’s just the knowledge that she might say no that keeps me from throwing caution to the wind. But we were still so fresh from Hawaii, and our passion overtook us.

And that’s the rub. Hawaii. Before that I’m pretty sure I had saved her life more times than I had made love to her. And there had always been the wolf of the real world, baying at the door. She was in danger from some psychopath, or she was on a break from Morelli that I knew from experience would be temporary. But in Hawaii we could pretend that we could be together. We had each other all and nothing else pressing on our time. I didn’t give a damn about catching the Rug, I just cared that for the first time, I could glimpse what life could be like in some alternate universe far from Trenton. I had spent a lot of time on the beach watching her play in the water, and imagining running away with her. I had enough money and investments that neither of us would ever have to work a day in our lives again. I had the contacts and skills to make us new identities and we could just disappear. Buy some little beach hut on a tropical island and never see the grime of New Jersey again. I’d actually been trying to figure out how to jokingly suggest the plan to her, just to see how she reacted.

We made love like the newlyweds we were pretending to be. And that’s what it really was, making love. I’d never felt like that with anyone before, even Rachel during our short marriage. Every other woman had been a distraction for a night, or a week, maybe a month. Even as a kid I wasn’t great with emotions, and before too long women always want to know them. But with Stephanie I could relax. She accepted what I could give, and somehow burrowed her way into my heart. And on that beach I finally got to give her all my attention. Noone threatening her, the business in Tank’s hands, and Morelli wasn’t always there in the background, waiting to dart in and grab her away again. I’d waited too long, though, and it had all gone to shit. 

I wouldn’t make that mistake again.

\------------------------------

I looked up into her blue eyes, her beautiful body sitting astride my stomach. I ran a finger gently along the outside of her leg, from her ankle to her knee to her hip. Her wild hair was a mess of tangles, creating a halo around her head that shone in the dim moonlight. It’s cliche to say she looked like an angel, but I’d certainly never seen a more heavenly body.

This is what she’s done to me. I’m making stupid puns. And I don’t care.

I cupped her hip in my hands, then moved them further up, skimming the bottom edge of the t-shirt, my t-shirt, that she was wearing. Amazing how something that seemed so basic and practical on me was as sexy as Victoria’s Secret on her. I might have to have it framed and hung on my wall like a signed jersey. My hands kept creeping up her torso as her breath got faster and shallower. 

I felt each rib as I moved my hands up to my goal. It was so tempting to rush this, to bury myself inside her until she screamed. But I was absolutely determined to do this right. So when my hands met her breasts I circled the nipples slowly with my thumbs. Her breath caught in her throat as I played with each nub, one clockwise, one counter-clockwise. 

She arched her back, rubbing her clit against my abs. Then she did it again, and again. My stomach was slick with her juices as she slid up my body. I longed to see her, up close. So I slid down the bed until my chin was rubbing her pubic bone. She tore off the t-shirt, freeing her breasts and giving me a fantastic view from her downy black curls to the brown ones on top of her head, and everything in between. I nuzzled her with my chin, bringing in the scent of her, then pushed myself further down. 

I started my exploration between her folds, my tongue caressing, exploring, probing, separating. With every movement she opened up more, like heavy curtains being pulled back. My nose nudged at her button, giving her teasing rubs that hinted at what was to come. She let out a soft sound, a tiny cry of pleasure as my tongue entered her, swirling around her depths. She fell forward slightly as she lost awareness of anything around her, my hands holding her up as they played with her breasts. 

“Babe?” I asked, wondering if I should lay her down on the bed, though I loved having her above me.

“Don’t…..you dare….stop.” she gasped out, reaching forward and grabbing the headboard for support.

With my hands now free to roam, I let them explore her. My left hand went up to caress her jaw, and my right came down to assist my tongue. I gently pushed a finger into her, adding another two quickly. I thrust and rolled them around in her, relishing the moans and cries that came with every movement. Her face was scrunched up and her neck arched as she writhed. I could feel her muscles tighten up and I pulled away for another moment, causing her to grunt in frustration. 

“Look at me, Babe. I want to see your face when you cum.”

She tilted her head down, looking at me as I replaced my mouth, suckling and kneading at her. I felt her muscles contract around my fingers. She gushed again, and clamped her legs around me as she rode out the waves of her orgasm. Her moan bordered on a scream, crying out to a deity, to me, and then some incoherent ramblings. I couldn’t breath, and I didn’t care as long as I got to watch her in ecstasy. Ecstasy that I had caused. Her face was pure bliss, and it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I just hoped she’d let me put that look on her face every day.

When she finally came down from the orgasm, she collapsed on top of me, boneless and pliant as a pile of blankets. As luck would have it, one of her breasts was near my mouth and aching to be played with. I took the nipple between my teeth, worrying it without biting. She tried lifting her body, but her arms weren’t cooperating. Chuckling slightly, I slid her down my chest and locked eyes with her. “That was amazing Babe. You can’t imagine how beautiful you look when you’re cuming from my touch.” It was a bit more flowery than I generally was when I spoke, but hiding my feelings from her had never served me well.

“Holy shit Batman! That was incredible.” I lifted the corners of my mouth slightly. Any man would be thrilled to get a compliment like that, especially from Steph. 

Then her eyes darkened and she got a mischievous grin on her face. “Now let’s see if we can top it.” She whispered in my ear what she wanted to do, and I was quite happy to oblige. I reached into a bedside drawer and pulled out a condom, which she snatched from my hand before I could open it. She opened the foil package and pulled it out, settling it on the tip of my dick. I reached to roll it down, frustrated at how slowly she was going, but she held my wrist, then used her tongue and teeth to roll it from tip to base, swirling and teasing along the way.

“Babe…” I said, not really capable of saying more as I struggled to not cum right then and there.

I pushed myself up with my arms, and raised my knees, creating a valley where my cock sat, throbbing painfully from how turned on I was watching her cum. She slowly straddled me mid chest, then slid down, leaving a slick trail in her wake. When she reached my groin, I slid into her like we were two parts of a machine designed to join together. 

I knew there was no way I could last very long like this, so I leaned forward to kiss her. She wrapped her arms around my chest, leaving me to support our combines weights. I didn’t mind at all, reveling in having her on top of me but still getting to feel our skin pressed together. I leaned all our weight on my left arm, and slid my right hand between us, rubbing tiny circles on her clit so I could see her cum again before I lost it. When she came again she tried to muffle her cry into my shoulder, biting down on it. The mixture of pain and pleasure drove me over the edge as I fell back, panting and reveling in the bliss that was this amazing, sensual woman whom I didn’t deserve, but couldn’t live without.


	9. Morning After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stephanie spends time at the range, honing her gun skills.

Stephanie

I lay limply on Ranger’s chest, trying to catch my breath. I’ve often described Ranger as magic in bed, but his actual skill still amazes me every time. After a few minutes of laying there like a sloth on barbiturates, I looked at the clock.

“Looks like Batman missed his workout. How inconsiderate of me.”

He grinned his full 1000 watts at me. “Trust me Babe, I’m not complaining. Though as much as I’d like to stay here in bed with you all day, I have a full schedule today. Do you want the shower first or second?”

I grinned at him. “Wouldn’t it save time to shower together? You once told me you were good in the shower….”

He kissed the top of my head and rolled out of bed. “If I shower with you, I won’t get to work on time. Or potentially at all. Join me for breakfast?”

I made a face. “It’s not going to be tree bark and grass, will it?”

He smiled again, “I’m sure Ella can come up with something. I’ll give her a call. You can sleep a bit longer after we eat, but I want you at the gun range by 900 hours.”

Oh goody. More time at the gun range. I rolled over and buried my head under a pillow. I heard him chuckle as he went into the bathroom, and soon the smell of steam and Bvulgari permeated the room.

10 minutes later there was a knock, and Ranger went to the door. “Babe,” he called out to me. “Breakfast.” 

I moaned and rolled out of bed, shuffling to the dining room. There was a large silver serving dish sitting on the table, and two cereal bowls at the chairs. “What’s that? I asked suspiciously. 

“Something I thought we would both enjoy. We don’t often eat the same thing. It’s yogurt with granola, fresh sliced strawberries, crushed raspberries, honey, and vanilla. Healthy enough for me, sweet enough for you.”

I found it adorable that he wanted to eat the same food as me, so found something we would both like. “No tree bark?”

“No tree bark. Though if you want some, there’s cinnamon in the pantry. That’s the only tree bark I eat unless it’s an emergency”

I tried the mixture. It was pretty good. Not a Boston Creme donut, but definitely edible. Halfway through I caught him staring at me. “What?”

“You have yogurt on the corner of your mouth. Want me to clean it off for you?” His eyes got dark, and I’m sure he was thinking of half an hour before. I smiled at him, and he kissed me, licking my lips, then pushing his tongue deeper. Our mouths should have been cold from breakfast, but somehow he still seemed to radiate heat.

He pulled away from me, and tucked a curl behind my hair. “I’d better go. How about we have lunch up here at noon? You can tell me how things went at the range.”

I nodded. “Have a good day, Batman!”

“Have a good day, Wonder Woman.” And he was gone.

\--------------------------------------

I rolled out of bed at 8:15, still awash in the happy glow from earlier in the morning. I hopped in the shower, spending more time there then I normally would, knowing I was likely going to be naked with Ranger in the next 12 hours. I put on some light makeup, and tied my hair back. It might not be my best look, but if I was going to be at the range, I needed it controlled.

At 8:58 I walked into the gun range. Lester got there at the same time, carrying a roll of several sheets of poster paper and grinning at me wickedly. “Hey Beautiful. How are you doing?”

“Pretty good. How was your date?”

Lester grinned at me. “A gentleman never kisses and tells.”

“Shouldn’t be a problem. You’re no gentleman.”

He laughed. “Be nice to me Bomber, or we won’t get to play our game.”

I raised my eyebrows at him. He retaliated by raising just one, because apparently I’m the only person in Trenton who can’t do that. “What game?” I asked, then narrowed my eyes at him. “This isn’t going to be a game of Hide the Salami, is it?”

He laughed, throwing his head back. “No, though now you’re giving me ideas. What’s wrong, the cop not keeping you satisfied? You need me to step in?” 

I blushed, and my eyes shifted to the side. In the last lane, the mockup of Morelli I had made last night still hung, including the shot-out crotch. Lester’s eyes followed mine, and he spotted the Faux-relli.

“Something you need to talk about, Beautiful?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I already did. Ranger and I talked last night.” I started blushing again.

Understanding dawned in Lester’s eyes. “Are you telling me my idiot cousin finally got his head out of his ass and told you how he feels about you?”

“You knew?”

“Of course I knew! Everyone at Rangeman knows. The cops know. Your skips know. Little old ladies walking their dogs as they pass the two of you know that he loves you. You only have to look at how he watches you when you’re together. The only people that didn’t know how much you two love each other, would be the two of you ”

He threw an arm around my shoulder and kissed the top of my head. “I’m thrilled for you, for both of you. I’m disappointed he got to you first, but you make each other happy. And you both deserve that, even if Ranger doesn’t believe it about himself.”

Lester put one of the poster sized pieces of paper on the track for target practice. On it was a grid of squares, each about 3 inches to a side. “OK Bomber, like I said, it’s time to play a game.” 

Lester pulled out a sharpie and darkened some of the lines on the poster paper, making a 3x3 grid.

I looked at him. “When you said game, you didn’t mean Tic-Tac-Toe, did you?

He grinned at me. “Yup. Thought you might appreciate something to keep this interesting. And maybe you can relax more if you aren’t thinking of a gun as a way to kill people. You need to be willing to do that if necessary, but one step at a time, OK?” I nodded. “You want to be X’s or O’s?”

“I’ll be X.” Lester pulled out a pad of paper and drew another 3x3 grid on it. He gestured for me to shoot. I aimed for the middle square, figuring that even if I missed, I’d get something. 

BANG! A hole appeared within an inch of where I had been aiming. I was pretty pleased with myself, and marked an X on the paper. Lester took aim and hit the upper right corner dead-center, marking the paper with an O. We went back and forth like that, at first he beat me every time because of his superior aim, but as I got better I started to beat him using my long-dormant Tic-Tac-Toe skills. Once I was sure enough of my aim that I was willing to pick a specific place to shoot, not just hope for the best, I started creaming him in every game.

“Damn, Bomber, where did you learn to play Tic-Tac-Toe so well?” he asked after I had beaten him in my 5th game straight.

“Have you ever heard the story about how when I was 6 I tried to fly by jumping off the garage roof? I broke my arm when I landed in the yard.”

“No, but it doesn’t surprise me one bit. I bet you were hell on wheels as a kid.”

“Well, my mom was really mad, and I was in a cast, and I was pretty sore all over. I was grounded and couldn’t watch TV, I was too young to read, and too sore to play outside or sit on the floor. So I used to spend hours playing tic-tac-toe with my sister or Grandma. Seems it’s a skill that never leaves you.”

“That explains it. This is getting too easy for you.” On the next poster, he drew smaller squares, making a 6x7 grid, then mounted it lengthwise. “Next up, Connect 4!”

After nearly 3 hours of training my arms were aching, but I was feeling pretty good. Lester had been right, it was easier to work on aim when I wasn’t thinking about potentially killing someone. I gave Lester a hug in thanks, and went upstairs to have lunch with Ranger.

As I stepped off the elevator I met Ella, who had a tray with her. “Thanks you for breakfast this morning, it was delicious.”

Ella smiled at me. “My pleasure dear. I was so glad to hear you had spent the night. You know you’re welcome anytime, right?”

I nodded. It was amazing to have a maternal figure who didn’t put me down or question my life choices constantly. 

“I made you sandwiches, dear. They will be fine if you leave them out for a while, nothing will go bad.” She handed me the tray and left, and I walked in and set it on the kitchen counter. Then it struck me what Ella had said, and I got a naughty grin on my face. I looked at the clock, I had 10 minutes until Ranger would get here. I ran to the bedroom to see what was in the closet.

Ranger

I’d had a productive morning, despite my thoughts constantly drifting back to this morning. I hope Babe didn’t regret it, I knew I didn’t. We had a pattern of her moving one step forward, two steps back, so I was worried that after our time in bed together she might run for the hills. I just hoped her epiphany last night was clear enough that she wouldn’t run to Morelli.

I opened my door and called out, more nervous than I wanted to admit to myself that she wouldn’t be here. “Babe? You ready for lunch?”

“I’m in here.” Her voice called out from the bedroom. It was husky and pitched much lower than usual. I walked in, and stopped dead in my tracks. Steph was wearing a tight sheath dress that she had worn to a distraction a few weeks ago. The drive over to the bar that night had been an uncomfortable one as I tried not to show how turned on I was. It had taken every ounce of control I had to keep it together when I placed the wire, as she wasn’t wearing a bra. Now she was standing in my bedroom, her arm stretched above her head as she leaned against the wall. 

“Playing with fire, Babe.” I said as I moved closer to her, drawing out the tension, relishing the game. 

“Then burn me.” I didn’t need to be asked twice. I pulled her to close to me, kissed her like my life depended on it, and fell onto the bed with her. 

Stephanie

Half an hour later we lay sweaty on the bed. I was still wearing the dress, though it was bunched up around my stomach. Ranger hadn’t wanted to take the time to actually remove it, and I hadn’t been too keen on the idea of wasting the time anyway. We lay together in a sweaty, tangled heap. 

“That was definitely better than sandwiches.” I panted, still a little breathless.

“I agree, though maybe next time we could eat lunch off each other.”

“Easy for me. I could cover you with whipped cream, or chocolate sauce, or marshmallow fluff. Not sure what you eat that would spread well.”

“Hmmm, maybe hummus. I could spread it on your nipples like this.” He rubbed gentle circles around my areolas, “And then I could clean it off like this.” And he took me in his mouth, running his tongue over the nub, then lightly scraping me with his teeth. A shiver went through my spine, and I arched my back. “I’ve never been a big fan of hummus, but I bet you could convince me.” 

\-------------------------------

We went into the kitchen to eat lunch. I had changed back into Rangeman black jeans and t-shirt. He had donned fresh cargos. At my request, he hadn’t added a shirt yet, so I had a lovely view while eating.

“I’m going down to Philly of Friday for more security planning, Babe. I was wondering if you wanted to join me. We could spend a couple days in the city. See the sights. Maybe take in a show. “

“Ranger, are you asking me on a date? A proper one where we aren’t trying to catch a fugitive?”

He grinned at me. “Thought I might give it a try. See how a date that didn’t involve you trying to seduce other men would go.”

“Sounds great. Think Ella would watch Rex for me?”

“Babe.”


	10. Locks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stephanie plans to break up with Morelli, and Ranger reminices.

Stephanie

I was getting ready to go back to the gun range when I remembered something and stopped in my tracks. Ranger was right behind me and crashed into my back, wrapping his arms around me to keep me from falling. “Sorry Babe. Didn’t mean to do that.”

“I bet you were paying so much attention to my butt you didn’t notice I stopped.”

“I plead the fifth.” He smiled at me, and I wiggled my ass a bit, rubbing it against his crotch. His eyes darkened, and he looked like he might want to drag me right back into the bedroom. It was tempting, but I knew he had a meeting in 15 minutes, and I didn’t want him to be rushed. Ranger liked to take it slow, and I enjoyed every drawn-out moment.

“I wanted to ask a favor” I said, trying to ignore my own carnal desires. 

“What do you need, Babe?” he asked, looking like he’d hand over just about anything I asked for.

“I want a new lock on my door. Morelli has a key right now, and it’s not that I don’t trust him, but I’d just feel better if he couldn’t walk into my place anytime he wanted. Could you have Hector install something? I don’t want an alarm system, just….”

“I get it Babe. Have you spoken to him since last night?”

“No, I need to think about how to do this. It’s tempting to do it over the phone, easier to extract myself if he starts insulting me again. But we’ve known each other all our lives, so I’m not sure if that’s fair. Does he deserve to be told in person?”

“Not my strong suit, Babe. I’m more of a “Never trade names, and disappear before dawn kind of guy.”

I blanched at that, I don’t know what I’d do if Ranger just up and left me without a word.

He took my hand in his, kissing it gently. “You’re different. Dios, I guess every guy says that to every girl, don’t they. But you are. I’ve wanted this for far too long to fuck it up that obviously. I’m sure I’ll make mistakes. We’re both stubborn people, we’ll have clashes, no doubt, but never doubt that I love you, even if I’m being pig-headed.”

I smiled at that. “I’ll tell Joe after I’ve gotten the locks changed. I suppose it’s better to do it sooner rather than later. Luckily I don’t think I have anything at his place I wouldn’t be willing to give up. I recently went through and grabbed all my clothes from there to do laundry. It’s just shampoo and things like that, so no need for a stuff exchange.”

“I’ll have Hector do it this afternoon. How many copies of the key do you need?”

I thought for a moment. “4, I think. That way my Super and neighbor can have one.”

“Who’s the 4th one for?”

“You. I know you don’t need one to get in, but I want you to have one. To show you’re always welcome. Besides, if it means you can get into my place a few seconds quicker by not having to pick the lock, all the better.”

“Babe.” He said, and he kissed me silly before we left the apartment to go downstairs..

\-----------------------------  
When I got to the gun range Lester was already there. Under his arm was a long, thin box, and there were 10x10 grids hanging up, labeled 1-10 and A-J. “OK, so it seems you can kick my ass at tic-tac-toe and Connect 4. Let’s try something harder. When was the last time you played Battleship?”

Ranger

I was having trouble believing that less than 24 hours ago Stephanie had been with Morelli, and I had been alone. The thief in the night, sneaking a kiss in the alley beside the bond office, or breaking into her place to watch her sleep. I can’t count the nights I spent there, trying to calm my nerves. I’ve seen and done things that are burned into my soul, and often they come back to visit me while I dream. But seeing Steph sleeping, looking so innocent, reminded me that there is good in the world. Sometimes I even manage to convince myself that if she cares about me, then there must be something worthwhile in my scarred spirit. When I watched her sleep I could pretend I was a normal man, and those nights I was able to sleep without dreams. Those precious few nights when I’d actually been able to sleep in her bed, holding onto her, were the most restful nights I’d had in my adult life. 

Many times when I had pulled into her lot I’d seen Morelli’s car parked there. On those nights I’d stare up at her window, wishing I could join her. On summer nights there had been a few times when her window had been open, and I’d heard her crying out his name. The first time that happened I’d pounded the steering wheel so hard I’d nearly broken it. It had been shortly after I’d told her to go back to the cop, and if he hadn’t been there, maybe I would have been able to rectify my mistake. The only comfort I’d taken was that while she was moaning, she didn’t sound nearly as excited as she had the night we were together. With me her cries had been breathier, louder, more enthusiastic.

Or maybe I was deluding myself. Trying to find the small bright spot in the shitshow of my own creation. I’d once walked into the room when they were both there asleep. Morelli’s car was in the shop, so I hadn’t recognized his rental. I’d been stunned to see the two of them, and had needed to back out of the apartment before I lost control of myself. When I had been hiding out at Stephanie’s apartment and Morelli had moved in I’d told her that if he had sex with her while I was there I’d have to kill him. It was tempting to do that when I’d seen him lying naked next to her. The picture was burned into my mind. They lay next to each other, barely touching, except he had been resting on her soft mound of black curls between her legs. The place I most wanted to be. When I slept with her, I curled around her, trying to protect her from the big bad world I knew was out there. 

I was kicking myself all the more after realizing how shoddily he had been treating her. Every comment he had made disparaging her while I was within earshot rattled around in my head. How had I not realized he talked to her like that all the time? I thought he was saying those things to rattle me, so I had ignored them. 

I needed to stop this. Reliving the past wouldn’t change it. My nightmares had taught me that. I had a client meeting in a few minutes, I had to pull Hector off the installation he was scheduled to do that afternoon and put him on a new lock at Babe’s apartment, and then I was going to look up romantic date ideas in Philly. There were a lot of museums, but that didn’t seem her style. I’d have to come up with an itinerary that fit her perfectly. 

Though whatever I came up with, I’m sure it would be a better date than sitting in the back of a bar, watching her seduce some poor sucker, desperately wishing it was me.


End file.
